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'Sister Wives' finale: Perhaps polygamy isn't all the Browns have cracked it up to be on TLC

As the season ends and cracks begin to show, could it be that the Brown family is not as close-knit as they have portrayed themselves to be thus far on Sister Wives?

TLC reality show Sister Wives has given America a view of polygamy from the inside, with husband Kody Brown, his four wives—Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn—and their 16 combined children. According to the Browns, they chose to take their lifestyle onto national television for the sake of shedding light onto their unconventional lifestyle and, they hoped, change some minds, hearts and, ultimately, laws against polygamy. However, as the season ended on Sunday, the Browns ended up leaving the state of Utah in a blind panic, in an attempt to evade an investigation by Utah authorities into their situation.

As the series originally began, Kody had three wives: Meri, wife one; Janelle, wife two; and Christine, wife three. The news that he had plans to marry a fourth wife, Robyn, was expected—Meri, in fact, had presented the idea of considering Robyn as his next wife to Kody—but did bring mixed feelings, jealousies and some bumps in the road for the Brown family. As the family has settled in with Robyn and her three children by a previous marriage, the show has highlighted how the relationships between the “sister wives,” as polygamist wives are known, have changed, and how the family dynamic has necessarily evolved to accommodate this new marital relationship within the household.

Fans have been concerned, as the latest season progressed, that Sister Wives would not be coming back for another season, as an investigation began into the Brown family situation, and continued forward. On several occasions, Kody and the wives have discussed on-camera the possibility of Kody being prosecuted, even winding up in jail, if Utah authorities decide to go full-forward with the investigation, bringing charges of polygamy against him. Recent episodes have focused on the Brown family’s decision to move away from their home state, and take up roots in Las Vegas—a choice they hope will prove beneficial, not only for their family as a whole, in terms of legal leniency, but also for the various husband-wife relationships, sister wife relationships, and the well-being of their children. However, as the show ended for this season, questions for the future began to arise, many indicating that the move is having some unintended and unexpected consequences for the Browns, but also demonstrating that, indeed, TLC plans to have Sister Wives on-air this fall.

In Utah, the Browns lived in one giant polygamist household. Robyn, the fourth and latest wife, did live separately from the family, in a home down the block, as the massive Brown home was built for the three-wife clan, but Kody had always expressed his intentions to get all four wives and all 16 children into a single home as soon as possible. However, in Las Vegas, the wives all had to take separate homes, with Kody traveling between the four to see not only his wives, but his children, as well. Again, he expressed his intentions to have his entire family under one roof. However, at least two of the wives—Meri and Christine—found that they actually enjoyed being apart from the rest of the family, having their own, private relationship with Kody and a more focused relationship with their own children. Tears and fears began flowing at this revelation from the wives, and cracks began to show in the carefully crafted façade the Browns had presented to the world all season, leaving viewers to wonder: Maybe, after all, the Browns are not as perfectly happy in their world of multiple marriages as they have claimed.

Additionally, Kody and Robyn announced that they are expecting their first baby together in October. A new baby can rock the foundation of the most stable family dynamics—how will it affect the well-shaken Brown family as they settle down in Sin City? And, with jealousies precariously placed aside in the sister wives circle regarding the newlywed Browns, will a new baby for Kody and Robyn cause those feelings to rear their ugly heads again, particularly for Meri—the oldest wife and, as she has admitted, the wife with personal issues and disappointments involving her own inability to conceive? And, clips from the season cliffhanger indicated that some of the Brown kids may not be adapting to life in Nevada as well as the parents had hoped—but, considering the way they were jerked up from their life-long home in Utah, can anyone really blame them?

Fans will have to wait for next season for the answers to these and other questions from the Brown family; TLC has yet to give an official date for the new season kick-off, but one assumes it will be in the vicinity of August-September.